As is apparent from the foregoing prior art, it has been the practice in skull surgery to immobilize the head of a patient by positioning one or more pins into the skull to immobilize the head, typically in a three point grip at the back and at the front of the forehead. However, the use of a "crown of thorns" type head clamp is not suitable in all circumstances, especially where the patient is a child or infant whose bone structure has not hardened or where extreme pressure at a pin tip could pierce bone structure or collapse the skull. Also, in some surgical procedures where the front of the forehead must be accessible in order to correct bone malstructure, a pin or other gripping means at this position would obstruct the surgeon's field.
The apparatus of this invention is a clamp whereby the head is held by non-piercing pressure exerted on the cheekbones rather than on the forehead. The skin is not pierced but rather is gripped by external, pressure-exerting clamp pads placed below and just adjacent the cheekbones, and at the back of the head.